OTTAWA — Most of Jay Rosehill’s work as Colton Orr’s replacement on the Leafs’ policeman beat has gone unnoticed.

That was until Thursday’s classic bout with Boston’s Milan Lucic, one of the toughest customers in the NHL. The Marlies call-up came out of the penalty box after the Leafs killed one of their five minor penalties to find a scrum going on at the side of Toronto’s net. A push here and a shove there and the battle was on. The officials backed off and a series of blows were exchanged, the two separated briefly and went at it again, this time in full boxing stance, while almost 18,000 at the TD Garden roared their approval.

“I think in a way it was building up and the tensions in the game were rising,” Rosehill said. “I think we both thought it was the right time to go and he was getting in the face of some of our guys. I happened to see him in the scrum and I grabbed him.”

Lucic, whose victories included a decisive win over Leafs defenceman Mike Komisarek in the latter’s Montreal days, had just become the 10th player since the NHL lockout to get 30 goals, 30 assists and 100 penalty minutes in the same season. But fourth-liner Rosehill held his own, delivered a couple of rights at the end after absorbing the same. He took a key Bruin off the ice for five minutes.

“He’s a big boy and I was trying to stay away from his right,” Rosehill said.

Lucic actually went to the Boston room after the fight, but was careful to say it was an equipment issue and not to heal any damage from Rosehill.

Lucky Luke

Defenceman Luke Schenn is now at 21 points this year, 10 shy of the total for his first two seasons with the Leafs.

But coach Ron Wilson was not about to christen him the next Borje Salming, citing Schenn’s fifth goal of the year against the Bruins, which banked in off ex-blue line partner Tomas Kaberle in Thursday’s game.

“You shoot 10 feet wide and it goes in,” Wilson said. “That shows you luck has as much to do with it as anything.”

Ditto for his assist on Joffrey Lupul’s second goal.

“It’s kind of circumstance,” Wilson said. “We lost complete control of the puck and they passed it (back), like the goal the other night where Carl Gunnarsson lost it and they gave two assists. So how do you figure that?

“Luke did do a good job of keeping it alive, Phil Kessel bobbled it and their defenceman whacked it (to Lupul). At the end of the day, a lot has to do with luck.”

Loose Leafs

James Reimer is 13-4-1 away from the Air Canada Centre, with another road date on Saturday against Ottawa.

“I have no idea,” Reimer said of his road comfort level. “There are obviously different aspects to being on the road than at home, being closer to the guys, more camaraderie.” ... Mikhail Grabovski’s flubbed penalty shot in Boston would have been the first successful attempt by a Leaf there since Bill Barilko beat Jack Gelineau on

March 1, 1950. Grabovski was also stopped by Chicago’s Corey Crawford last month...Some notable ice times on Thursday, Gunnarsson at 30:25 and Dion Phaneuf just two seconds behind ... The Leafs improved play since January still didn’t erase their large margin of giveaways. They have 847, second in the league to the Oilers. They coughed the puck up 13 times on Thursday to seven by the Bruins.